August 31, 2002
I'm well past the 19-hour day mark. During a break today, I saw a VH1 special about KISS's collaboration with "That 70s Show." As with tribute bands, a bad KISS special is better than no KISS special.
The day job went extremely well today. We set the standard for how a college opening should occur. Everyone is exhausted.
Since I didn't do any book work, I'll try to dream about KISS.
Goodnight.
September 1, 2002
T minus 3 days until I can fully resume my KISSfiction quest for success. Today, I gave the college newspaper permission to use the picture on my homepage for their article. The editor told me I could review the piece before it goes to print. The story goes live on the 4th.
I'm pretty wired tonight. I planted trees during the day and told 500 students not to violate campus policies by night. I'll try to write a few paragraphs for book II before I crash.
September 2, 2002
I tried drafting a couple paragraphs of my letter to Gene, asking him to write a note of support for my submissions to agents/publishers. I'm not crazy about my first effort, but it helps me ease the guilt over not working much on anything book-related during the past few weeks of day job boot camp.
While I was in the shower this morning, I pondered my displeasure with the measly number of photographs I have available for opportunities such as the article coming out on Wednesday. As I thought about the interview the reporters conducted, I remembered them asking about my trip to see KISS on New Year's Eve 1999 in Vancouver. It suddenly hit me that I had a couple great pictures from that trip. I ran to my guest/junk room in a towel, leaving a trail of wet footprints behind me. I found the pix in question, and I think both photos capture the girl-next-door/heavy metal dichotomy I like to talk and write about. I'll post them on the website as soon as I can get scanned copies. Lesson: Be more prepared to self-promote!
One of the traditions at my day job is an event in which residence hall floormates peforms a skit for a group of quasi-hip administrators who judge the creativity and character of the performers. Yep. Anyway, for the first time in my tenure, a group from Rauch (prounounced Rowk) Hall dressed like modified KISS members and belted out "I wanna Rauch 'n' roll all ni-i-ite and study ev-er-y day!" They even smashed their carefully crafted cardboard guitars at the end! It was beautiful mayhem. Was it a particularly enlightened hall? An act of sucking up? Who cares. Rock on, Rauch.
September 3, 2002
Another night of paying bills. I can't wait until KISSfiction takes care of the big one - the mortgage. Tomorrow is the day I start actively working on getting that darn thing published again.
A box of KISS cassettes I ordered off Ebay a couple weeks ago arrived today. Now I have a new soundtrack to accompany the story of my endeavors and inspire me when I need a kick.
I told my sister/editor tonight that my biggest hope about tomorrow's article is also my biggest fear. What if people pile on the website? What will they think? I think I might have to pop Music from the Elder into the stereo tomorrow on my way to work.
September 4, 2002
I think I have my opening line for the Gene letter. It's professional but provocative, and at least as good as my scorchingly hot agent query. I'll write the new version tonight and get some critical input from Secret Reader when we have dinner - next week, I hope.
The big College Reporter article was out on the newstands tonight. I don't know how many people have seen it yet. We haven't crashed the Yahoo! server with an overwhelming number of hits yet, so my nightmare of eliciting a large new group of voyeurs has not come to be. The article turned out to be a 2-page spread! The pictures look great, and the article only makes me sound like half a nitwit. (I provided a full nitwit's volume of quotes. The reporters were kind.) They even stole the little Won't Get Fooled Again teaser blurb from my About the Author page. I can make fun of myself, but when I think that a year ago, I had no idea I was going to have such an adventure over the past 11 months, I have to smile. Life is pretty funny, and I'm lucky as hell.
Our international friend, Jill, wrote in to say that the word "Rauch" means smoke in German. Sorry students - she warns that if you Rauch all nite, you'll find it difficult to study ev-er-y day. It's all about freedom and consequences, I guess. (continued)
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